Au Revoir
by Queen Sunstar
Summary: Paris is struck by a series of murders. With both Chat Noir and Ladybug missing, it falls to the Cyber Neko to solve the crimes and deal with the increasing threat of Hawk Moth.
1. Chapter 1

**Queen Sunstar: I hemmed and hawed over posting this story. Characters are likely a little OC. I apologize for that, but I think I did okay. My OC and the Vocaloid Kaito Shion are not the same character. My OC, Kaito Chauncey, is based very loosely on him. Kaito has a Miraculous of his own, Bast, whom takes the form of a long tailed small black house cat named Sundae. Her actual fairy form is unknown. Kaito is blind. His alter form is called Cyber Neko. Bast gives her eyes to allow him to see. In his alter form, he is an adult.**

 **Summary:** Paris is struck by a series of murders. With both Chat Noir and Ladybug missing, it falls to the Cyber Neko to solve the crimes and deal with the threat of Hawk Moth.

 **I'm going to shut up now and let you read. Reviews are nice, and ?I accept everything, even flames. Just make sure you explain what you don't like. I listen to my readers and will make changes at their request, within reason, that is. Enjoy!**

—

School was out for the day. Spring break was two weeks away. The recent spate of murders were on everyone's minds, and it had left everyone subdued as one of the victims was a fellow classmate, a quiet girl named Jayla Harper. Marinette Dupain- Cheng stood just outside of the school.

"They are saying she bled to death from a chest wound, same as all the others." Marinette's best friend, Alya Cesaire, was saying.

"Jayla worked in the bakery with us. Her sweet treats were amazing. It is hard to believe she was murdered." Marinette thought about the silent yet hard worker she'd only known for a short week, "Who would hate Jayla enough to kill her?"

"Guys! They are now saying Cyber Neko is a suspect!" Nino Lahiffe ran up to them, Adrien Agreste not far behind him.

"But he's a hero!" Alya protested, "What reason would he have to kill those people?"

"I said he's a suspect, not the killer." Nino said, "You are right. What reason would he have to kill them?"

"Jayla kept to herself. I'm not even sure she had friends. Why her?" Adrien asked.

"Cyber Neko might have a reason." The four friends looked up to see Kaito Chauncey, his eyes hidden by a black band, carefully coming down the stairs. "He may not have a way to save them if they were akumatized." Kaito was blind. His seeing eye cat, a pure black female cat named Sundae, purred from her perch on his right shoulder. Her unusually long tail lay around his neck. She used her tail to direct Kaito, who refused to use a stick.

"But still, why kill?" Alya asked.

"They may have been a danger to Paris. I worry about Ladybug and Chat Noir. What if one or both of them end up akumatized, and Cyber Neko has to kill them to stop them?" Kaito asked.

"Can they even be akumatized?" Nino asked.

"Who knows? Chat Noir won't go down without a fight." Adrien said, "Ladybug too."

"The school doesn't want students walking home alone. Adrien, you said you were going to the Dupain Bakery to pick up your dads order. I know! Why don't you two walk together?" Nino replied. He winked at Alya.

"That's a great idea!" Alya enthused, "How about it, Marinette? Marinette?" She waved a hand in front of the now beet red Marinette's face. Nino did the same with Adrien, whom also had gone beat red.

"Alya, I think we broke them!" Nino said, "Adrien, you in there somewhere? Snap out of it!"

"Desperate times call for drastic measures!" Alya grinned at Nino, and shoved Marinette at Adrien, whom was shoved at Marinette by Nino. They both ended up in each other's arms. This woke them up, and they jumped away from each other.

"W-walk Marinette h-home? O-of course!" Adrien's voice went high as he stuttered.

"Adrien walking me home? I don't need-" Alya covered Marinette's mouth.

"She says yes!" She made Marinette nod.

"Alya!" Marinette protested once she got free, "I live two streets over! I'm perfectly capable of walking home alone!"

"There is that new rule." Kaito pointed out, "I'll walk with you two part way. I live in that direction myself."

Both Nino and Alya stifled groans. So close!

"Fine." Marinette gave in.

"I'll be with them part way!" Kaito hissed to Nino and Alya, "They won't go otherwise!"

Nino and Alya both brightened. The plan was still on! This did not go unnoticed by Adrien and Marinette, who gave them both odd looks.

"Chop chop, you two!" Nino smiled brightly.

"Yes, you two don't want to be late now!" Alya waved.

"Come on now!" Kaito matched their tone perfectly.

"They are up to something." Adrien said.

"If you three are attempting once again to play matchmaker with us, I won't be happy, and maybe I might ask Ladybug to shut off the power!" Marinette hissed.

"If Cyber Neko doesn't talk her out of it." Kaito added.

"Don't worry. Chat Noir will beat them both to it!" Adrien finished. All three knew how important the Internet was to Alya.

"You wouldn't dare!" Alya protested.

"I hear you are dying to interview Cyber Neko. Maybe I'll talk to him and see if he is willing to be interviewed." Kaito cut in.

"Really?" Alya squealed, "Do it!"

"You should tell him the police are looking for him. He might need to lay low for a while." Nino elbowed Alya, "I'll walk you home!" He dragged her away. The other three began to walk.

"I'm curious. A seeing eye cat?" Adrien turned to Kaito, "Why do you hide your eyes?"

"I am not comfortable around dogs." Kaito looked away, "Sundae here, I have had her since she was a two week old kitten. She was a year and a half when the explosion that took my sight happened. She already loved to sit on my shoulder. It didn't take long for her to teach me her tail signs. We got her certified and she has done her duty to me since." Kaito answered, "A tap on my left shoulder means turn left. A tap on my right shoulder is right. A tap on my back means walk forward. A tap on my chest means stop. It's better that my eyes stay covered. You see, I don't have any eyeballs."

"I'm curious now." Adrien said.

"I'm not." Marinette looked away.

Kaito reached up and carefully removed his band.

"That doesn't look bad. Your eyelids are sewed shu-wait don't open them! Oh god, I'm going to have nightmares!" Adrien quickly looked away.

"Are those wires?" Marinette looked closer at Kaito's empty eye sockets.

"Yes. In a few days, the next step will happen. The plan is to restore my vision with bio based cybernetics. Recently, I had a tooth extracted and a lens attached to it. It currently resides within my cheek. A frame crafted of my own cells is currently being sculpted. In a few days, the frame and the lens will be put together and attached to those tiny wires. If all goes well, I will be able to see again. Right now the focus is my left eye. My right eye will be done months down the road after I adapt to my new eye and being able to see." Kaito felt Sundae tapping his right shoulder, "My turn has come up."

"That's a highly experimental treatment. My dad recently made a huge donation for the research into it." Adrien said, "It is based upon Tooth in Eye surgery done in the U.S.A." He watched as Kaito entered the alley near them. Kaito lived in an apartment below street level with his Governess, Deka. Adrien and Marinette resumed walking.

"He handles being blind quite well." Marinette responded.

"And I thought Laryngitis was bad." Adrien said, "I couldn't talk for a week."

In the alley, instead of going to his apartment door, Kaito turned left. "Suit up!" A swirl of blue light later, he stood as Cyber Neko, his body that of a lanky well muscled adult. It felt good to see, the eyes provided by his Kwami, Bast. Bast hid as Sundae. As Cyber Neko, he wore a black bodysuit with a white and blue crop jacket. Long black sleeves began from the middle of his upper arms to flare open at his wrists. On the back of his right hand was what resembled a disk player. Slung at his left hip was a pouch of disks. Each disk provided a weapon. A white tail and ears gave him a feline look. A pair of white boots completed his look.

' _You didn't actually need to walk with them, you know._ ' Bast replied within his mind.

' _I know! I couldn't resist!_ ' "Claw program run." Cyber Neko scrambled neatly up the building using his newly acquired claws. Distantly, he heard the scream of failing brakes. The sound was getting closer. He ran lightly across the roof, and horror flooded his body. There was no way he would reach them in time!

Adrien suddenly froze. Marinette turned to look at him. The sound of failing brakes filled the air. She turned again and this time screamed in horror. A bus slammed into a parked car that was now flying toward them. She saw her reflection in the front window. Suddenly the world went sideways. She felt the ground embrace her, pain shooting through her shoulder as her head made contact with the cement. She lay completely still, her mind hovering between sleep and awake. She came to after a minute, her head throbbing.

Gingerly she felt the newly formed bump above her right ear and winced, her hand feeling something wet and sticky. She knew at once it was blood. A wave of dizziness flooded her, forcing her to brace herself against the ground. Nausea welled up. After a few minutes she sat up. Her right arm wasn't working. Her right knee was burning. Adrien! Shock got her to her feet. She blinked.

"Adrien!" Her voice came out as a weak whisper. She staggered as the dizziness struck again, and shook it off. "Adrien!" Her voice was much stronger. She looked around. Acrid smoke rose from an overturned car and from the engine of the bus. Her vision wavered. She blinked again. "Adrien!" The force of her scream surprised her. Over there, the car! Marinette broke into a limping run. Reaching the car, she paused to fight against the urge to vomit. A hand closed around her ankle. She shrieked, jumping away from the hand. A minute later, she realized the hand belonged to Adrien. Cold fingers of fear crawled down her spine, bringing clarity to her dazed mind. She knelt.

The car rested on top of the blond boy. His eyes were open but they were glazed over. Blood seeped around him, oil and gas mixing into it. His head looked wrong. His blond hair was drenched with blood. What she could see of his arm looked okay. She blinked. Her brain was clouding up and her vision was wavering. No. Focus! Marinette threw herself against the car. She heard a strangled mewl of pain, and winced.

"Marinette!" Tiki rushed to her, "We have to save Adrien!"

Marinette nodded. Why was it getting so hard to focus? Save Adrien now, pass out later! "Tiki." She swayed on her feet. "I don't feel good…" The ground greeted her again.

"Marinette! Snap out of it!" Tiki slapped her repeatedly.

"I…" Marinette closed her eyes. Sleep would feel so good right now. "Adrien…" Yes, sleep. No! Must save Adrien! Sleep later! She got to her feet and struggled to the car. Again she threw her shoulder against it. Again came the strangled mewl.

"Marinette!" A new voice jerked her back to full wakefulness, "Oh God! You are hurt! Adrien!" The voice belonged to Cyber Neko, "This is bad! Marinette, I'm going to lift! You pull Adrien!"

Woozily, she bent down and took Adrien's hand. She pulled. Slowly Adrien was dragged out from under the car. His agonized cries ended as unconsciousness finally brought relief to what must have been torture. Marinette sank groundward once more. Her body had enough.

Cyber Neko made a quick decision. He hated using the program, but he needed to get them to the hospital quickly. "Cat program run!" and winced as his body rearranged itself to a white furred cat with blue markings and wheels for paws. "Marinette, I need you to get yourself and Adrien onto my back. I need to get you both to the hospital as fast as I can. Adrien is dying. There is no time to wait for an ambulance. He'll be dead by then." He crouched, "Hurry!"

Marinette rose and managed to get Adrien and herself onto Neko's back. He felt her beginning to pass out. "Stay awake, Marinette!" He broke into a run, "Hang on, you guys!" The trip to the hospital was thankfully quick. He burst through the doors. "I need help! He's dying, and she just passed out!" Doctors swarmed around him and he felt Marinette and Adrien get removed from his back. Quickly, he shifted back to his normal form.

"He's lost too much blood!" A doctor cried out.

"I want a CT of her neck and head! Bring the bedside X-Ray machine!" Another doctor ordered.

Neko promptly held out his arm. "Take blood from me! I'm O-!"

"Get a Surgeon here now! We need to operate! There's no time to get to the OR!"

Doctors shouted orders as a surgeon arrived. Blood from Neko was pushed quickly into Adrien's body. The surgeon went to work.

"Code blue!"

 **Queen Sunstar: This chapter is just the prologue. Chapter 1 will be out in January.**


	2. Chapter 2

**Queen Sunstar: Here's the first chapter. I'm not too happy with this one, but it will do for now. Enjoy, and I think I might have made Gabriel a little too OC.**

Pain surged through her body. She knew she was waking up. Her blue eyes opened slowly, and pain stabbed her skull. A white room came into focus. A hospital room. She was in the hospital. Okay, awake was a good thing along with the hospital. That meant she had received medical care. Her right arm was bandaged to her body, and there was a cast on her right knee. She raised her left hand and felt bandages wrapped around her head. That explained the headache.

"Marinette! You're awake!" Alya cried, "How do you feel?"

Marinette blinked a few times, Alya's voice seeming to echo in her head. "What happened?" Her eyes went wide as the memories of the accident rushed into her head. "Oh God! Adrien!"

Alya winced, "Calm down, Mari! Calm down! It's okay. There you go, breathe." Marinette stared at her friend, fear evident in her eyes. "I'm going to go get your mom."

"Alya. Please, Adrien?" Marinette begged.

"Soon, I promise." Alya left the room.

Marinette closed her eyes. He was dead. That's why Alya wouldn't say anything! She forced back her tears. No, not Adrien! She refused to believe it. It wasn't true!

"Honey! Oh honey, I was so worried!" She felt her mother embracing her, "Shh. Do you hurt somewhere?"

"My head!" Marinette broke, "No one will tell me anything about Adrien!"

"I thought it best that it came from you." Alya said.

"He's dead, right?" Marinette screamed, "Just tell me already!" Sakine looked away. Alya sniffled. "He is dead!"

"He's alive, but very badly injured. You have a dislocated shoulder, broken knee, and a concussion. You are very lucky Cyber Neko got you here so fast. The doctors were able to relieve the pressure in your skull in time and save your life." Sakine answered.

"No, you can't go see him." Alya cut in before Marinette could even form the question, "Adrien was life flighted to Paris Children's Hospital after doctors managed to stabilize him."

"You can go see him after you are released. There is someone else here that would like to see you, if you feel up to it." Sakine said, "His name is Cyber Neko."

"Please." Marinette nodded, and regretted it as new pain exploded in her skull, "But may I have some painkillers first?"

"Here." Alya picked up two pills from the tray and a cup. "I asked the nurse to leave some Advil for you." She helped Marinette take the pills.

Cyber Neko walked in. He went to Marinette's bedside, a soft and gentle smile on his face. Alya looked like she was going to faint being so close to one of Paris's superheroes.

I am thankful you are okay." Neko broke the silence, "I apologize for not being fast enough to advert the accident."

"No, there is no need to apologize. You got to us and got us here. You saved us. A superhero can't be everywhere at once. Ladybug taught me that." Marinette responded, "May I have a minute alone with Neko?" Sakine and Alya both left.

There was a small movement from under Neko's collar, and a tiny red blur streaked toward Marinette.

"Marinette! I've been so worried! It's been three days since the accident!" Tiki clung to Marinette, "I thought for sure I was losing another of my bugs!" The Miraculous started sobbing. "I was so scared!"

"Tiki!" Marinette held Tiki. She looked up at Neko. "Thanks for helping Chat Noir keep Paris safe in my absence."

"I've been on my own." Neko decided to be truthful. "Chat Noir hasn't been seen since the accident three days ago."

"What? Wait, three days? I've been out for three days?"

"Yes. I've had Kaito keep an eye uh, ear on you." Neko looked away, "During that time, I had to deal with the Pufferfish. It was Mrs. Hawkins, the teacher with an immunocompromised son. She shot needles and those that were hit were sickened with any disease we vaccinate against. It was not an easy fight."

"Can we show Marinette what we can do?" Tiki asked.

"Yes." Neko reached into his pouch and pulled out a blank disk. "Tiki program. Run!" Tiki spiraled into the disk which turned red with black spots. Neko slid the disk into the reader on the back of his right hand. He closed his eyes as he felt his body rise from the ground, red light circling him. The white of his outfit turned red and gained black spots. His tail and cat ears vanished. A pair of black antennae took the place of his cat ears. He felt his feet touch the ground as his left hand flashed, a red and black yo-yo appearing. "Cyber Neko, Ladybug Form."

"Wow! You could pretend to be my temporary replacement!" Marinette said, "How did you discover this?"

Tiki reappeared, "Cyber Neko was down. I got really desperate as Chat Noir hadn't shown up. When I collided with Neko, that happened in a flash of red light, sending Pufferfish reeling backward."

"You were able to heal the Akuma?" Marinette asked.

"I was, once I located it. Since then, Tiki has been staying with me." Cyber Neko said, "I don't know if I can do this with other Miraculous. Even Master Fu was surprised over this development."

"I'm going to have to come up with an explanation for my absence. You have seen Adrien?"

"Kaito is keeping an ear on him too. I know you'll ask, so here's the list. Adrien suffered a traumatic brain injury that required the removal of most of his skull. Kaito offered his body to the doctors and is currently carrying the pieces of Adrien's skull within the upper left side of his abdomen. Both of Adrien's legs were crushed and his pelvis was broken in three places. His right arm is broken, and he suffered major bruising of his spine, and doctors had to take his spleen and three feet of intestine so far. His heart and lungs are strained. He had a lot of internal bleeding, and his liver is failing. It doesn't look good. I tried so hard to get you both here as fast as I could. If I had been faster, I could have stopped the accident from happening."

"Don't beat yourself up over it. It's okay." Marinette soothed. "You responded. That's the best you can do."

"I'll be okay. Sometimes being a superhero is difficult, especially when you can't save someone. I often cry for those I can't save." Neko made up his mind, "The accident occurred because the buses brakes failed and the driver lost control. He is real messed up over it. I will see you later. My Miraculous is pushing her limits." Neko left after Tiki tucked under his collar. Alya and Sakine reentered the room.

"So, what did the two of you talk about?" Alya readied her pen and tablet.

"Nothing really. He was relieved I was okay." Marinette answered.

"And?" Alya waited.

"Where is dad at?" Marinette ignored her.

"Hey! You can't leave me hanging here!" Alya protested.

"Tom is with Gabriel. They are good friends, and Gabriel needs a friend right now. His son is in critical condition. Tom made him use our guest room and has been dealing with him." Sakine looked away, "Adrien looked really bad. He is so bruised and swollen."

"Come on! Spill already! You two talked for ten minutes!" Alya begged.

"I told you, he wanted to make sure I was okay. He also told me what happened. I don't blame the driver nor do I want to press charges." Marinette said. "It was just an accident." She yawned.

Alya groaned, "Chat Noir and Ladybug are missing. Cyber Neko was seen wearing Ladybug's colors during Pufferfish's attack. Is he Ladybug's replacement?" She gasped, "Could Ladybug be d-dead?" Her voice went high, "What about Chat Noir? Could he be d-dead too? Maybe they're Akumatized!"

"Or maybe they are taking a vacation." Marinette supplied.

"But that leaves Paris defenseless!"

"There's Cyber Neko. I bet Cyber Neko talked them into a vacation. I hear he is doing fine alone." ' _There's my excuse!'_

"Cyber Neko very nearly died!"

Marinette sighed, "Cyber Neko can borrow Ladybugs abilities, and Chat Noirs too. He showed me how he is able to borrow their abilities."

"Spill!"

"He has disks with their abilities copied onto them."

Inside Paris Children's Hospital, in the ICU, Gabriel stared helplessly at his sons shattered body. Bad did not begin to describe Adrien. He was so swollen, bruised. Both of his eyes were black. His lips were fat. His face, what could be seen around the blue tube coming out of his mouth was a mottled mix of black, blue, red, and yellow. Numerous wires and tubing jutted out of his body. Thick casts incased both of his legs and his right arm. Bandages crisscrossed Adrien's body, some spots colored red. A thick white cap covered Adrien's head, providing protection for his swollen brain, his skull currently in several pieces. Gabriel knew that was just the injuries that could be seen. What couldn't be seen was his crushed rib cage being supported by a silicon frame, his swollen heart barely moving blood, his bruised lungs working laboriously to exchange what little oxygen they could, his shredded liver, his failing kidneys, not to mention the severe internal bleeding.

Tears continued to fall down his face. All he could do was hold his sons uninjured left hand and pray. He wasn't a praying man, but now, he sent wordless pleas to every God and Goddess he could think of. Someone had to be listening. Adrien was still alive despite having coded three times so far. His mind brought up Emilie, Adrien's mother, his wife. Emilie. She would be working to find the best doctors for their son. She would not show the pain she would feel inside. She would be Adrien's advocate.

Him? Being a useless excuse of a father sitting beside his son crying and pleading to every higher power he could think of, and he was sure some of those higher powers were from various anime. He just didn't care anymore. He heard the door open and close.

"My w-" Tom quickly corrected himself. "Sakine called. Marinette is awake."

"Just because I lost my wife doesn't mean you have to avoid the word wife." Gabriel responded, "Go see Marinette."

"No."

"What?"

"You need me right now."

"You can go. I'll be okay on my own for a bit. Go see your daughter."

"Gabe, I know you. I know you don't want to be alone."

Gabriel bristled at his old nickname. "I won't be alone! There are nurses nearby! Just go!"

"Gabe."

"Do you have to call me that? We've been out of high school nearly 30 years!"

"27 for you, and 26 for me, mister I had to repeat 12th grade!"

"I had to miss half the school year because I had Leukemia!"

"So, it was the fault of the cancer, and not, perhaps, your D average?"

"You try getting good grades while being sick from the chemo and the cancer!"

"Maybe if you had let me help you instead of shut everybody out, you would have graduated on time!"

"My life went to hell in a hand basket! Wait a minute here! Why are we arguing about this? Tom, go see your daughter!"

"Fine."

Tom knew Gabriel would keep pushing him to do so. "I want a nurse in here with you."

"No need for that." Kaito walked in, "I'm here. I'll keep an eye on them. Wait! Ear! I'll keep an ear on them!"

"I can accept that." Tom left.

Kaito listened to the sounds of the multiple machines and Gabriel's breathing. It hitched occasionally, followed by a low whimper.

"Adrien is lucky he has you." Kaito replied.

"Lucky?" Gabriel scoffed, "He might as well be an orphan!"

"I am an orphan. I live with my governess, Deka. My parents died in the explosion that left me blind. I can't even cry for them. Adrien at least has you."

"Has me? He has barely seen me this year!"

"You can change that."

"I'm so busy!"

"Can you work from home?"

"Work from home?" Gabriel sounded stunned, "I could do what I do at home just as easily as in my office. I can hold meetings at home too. Adrien, have I been avoiding you?"

"Losing your wife had to be very painful for you. Do you think maybe you are avoiding Adrien because he reminds you of your wife?"

"Emilie. Her name is Emilie." Gabriel shifted a bit in his seat, "When Emilie told me she was pregnant with Adrien, I was so excited. I couldn't wait to be a father. I focused on my then small clothing store and worked so hard so that I could give Adrien a better life than I had. Is that so wrong?"

"What is Adrien's favorite color?"

The question threw Gabriel off, "What?"

"His favorite food?"

"What are you getting at?" Gabriel sounded angry.

"Do you even know Adrien?"

"Yes, I do know him!"

"You don't, Mr. Agreste."

"But I do!"

"You don't. What is his favorite subject in school?"

"What is with the questions?"

"Questions you should know the answers to. Questions all parents should know the answers to. You do not know Adrien. Adrian was the first to befriend me. He saw me, not my disability. He took the time to patiently walk me around school and Paris so I could count steps in order to be able to find my own way." Kaito felt his eye sockets start to itch, "Adrien was on that street because he was going to the Dupain Bakery to pick up your order for you!" Kaito reached up and scratched at his eye sockets, "I can't even cry! Adrien still loves you even though you aren't there for him!"

Gabriel shifted back, choked gasps coming from him. "Adrien…" Kaito heard him stand, and drop next to his sons bed. "I'm such an idiot! I was so focused upon giving you a better life that I forgot to give you me! I'm sorry! I'm so sorry!" These were deep body wracking sobs, the sobs of agonized grief. "Please, let me have a second chance! I will cut way back! I'll be there for you! I promise! Please! Don't leave me too!"

"Ebony, Cambert Cheese, and English." Kaito said.

"What?" Gabriel asked brokenly.

"The answers to the questions I asked you earlier. Ebony, Cambert Cheese, and English." Kaito repeated.

"I…" Gabriel turned, "Thank you, Kaito. You've opened my eyes." He squared his shoulders, "Adrien, things are going to change. I promise. Please give me that second chance!"

Night blanketed Paris. Once again her boss had made her stay late. Salome Bourgeois walked home toward her apartment. She walked by a still roped off street and shuddered. How had it felt seeing a car fall toward you? Ladybug and Chat Noir hadn't even showed up, only the Cyber Neko. Neko had said during an interview that he had literally dragged the two heroes onto the plane to get them to go. They needed the vacation, especially after the last akuma attack. Chat Noir nearly got ripped in half, and Ladybug had just managed to avoid getting run through. They were on the ropes until the Cyber Neko arrived and threw the Akuma off of them. He had ordered them to retreat while he fought the Akuma. She shuddered again, recalling how Chat Noir had blocked a strong hit with his body, protecting Ladybug. She had seen the entire fight from the conference room windows of her office building. That hit had to have been crippling. Didn't her cousin, Chloe, tell her that her boyfriend, Adrien Agreste, had missed three days of school due to a cracked collarbone, and that her rival, Marinette Dupain-Cheng, had come to school with her right arm in a sling, the same arm Ladybug had hurt during the fight? Coincidence? What if? Ladybug and Chat Noir had civilian disguises according to Cyber Neko, who said he had one too. Still, it was a coincidence. Unless… She was totally posting this on the Ladyblog!

Salome entered an alley, deciding to take a shortcut to get home faster. The alley was darker then usual. She sighed, the lights must be out, again. She'd have to call her uncle about that, and deal with him trying to hire her yet again. He needed to understand that she was happy with her job and life!

There was the sound of a crunch behind her, and she froze. Hot breath hit the back of her neck. She didn't dare to move. More hot breath. No. She was not about to die, not when she had figured out the civilian disguises of Chat Noir and Ladybug! She spun, and screamed. There was no way. A Minotaur? Minotaurs weren't real! She had to be dreaming. Wait, Minotaurs didn't have long twisted claws, or three tails tipped with sharp stingers, nor did they exist, at least not since the last time she checked.

"Mine!" The impossibility roared.

"No! Not yours, you freak!" Salome screamed.

She reached out and slapped the Minotaur across the face, and ran. It grabbed her after a few moments, it's claws digging into her body. She felt her ribs breaking under the pressure of the too large hands.

"Claw program! Run!" The Minotaur suddenly released her. "Stalking and capturing girls? I will end you!" Cyber Neko screamed, locked in a test of strength with the mythical beast, his muscles straining. With a grunt, he shoved it backward. A purple butterfly shape shimmered within the beast. It was slowly darkening, it's shape becoming crystallized. Cyber Neko's eyes widened. "No! Plagg Program! Run!" His colors turned black and gold while gaining Chats ears and tail. He charged. "Cataclysm!" His newly gained claws turned dark as he slashed at the Manticore. It stumbled backward, Neko's cataclysm too weak to do much damage. He groaned to himself. While Tiki and Plagg could grant him their power, they couldn't grant him their real users strength. What Neko used was a copy of their real users ability. "Tiki, take over! Tiki Program, Run!" His colors changed to red with black dots while his ears and tail vanished. A pair of antennae graced his head. "Tiki, help me out here! Lucky Charm! Seriously? A bubble wand? Tiki, this is no time for jokes!"

"I don't exactly control what lucky charm changes into! Marinette somehow manages to make what she gets works!" Tiki answered, "The charm chooses the best form to take!"

"Still, a bubble wand?" Neko sighed, "I feel like a magical girl." He waved it, bubbles billowing. The Minotaur charged into the bubbles and slowed down. Neko checked the Akuma's process, and groaned. There was no more time. The wand flashed, returning to its charm form.

"Quick! Open the charm!" Tikki cried out.

Neko did as told. He'd seen Ladybug restore Akuma numerous times, but this time, it was different. For one thing, he moved through an entirely different way, ending with holding the open charm over his head. He watched as warm light spilled over the Minotaur. The Akuma appeared, cracked apart, and a butterfly flew away. The Minotaur glowed and faded, revealing the man the Akuma had taken over. The man dropped gently to the ground, asleep.

"Is he?" Salome whispered, eyes wider than dinner dishes.

Neko knelt and checked for a pulse. "He's alive." He heard the beep of his Miraculous signaling his transformation coming to an end, "Call for an ambulance, okay?" He quickly scrambled up the side of the building and onto the roof, just making it before his transformation ended.

"Someone want to explain?" He asked as Bast, Tikki, and Plagg appeared before him.

"You became Ladybug?" Plagg arched an eyebrow, "And used her power?"

"That's not what he met, son." Bast chided, "It is strange. My previous wielders never used other Miraculous as programs, nor their powers."

"Maybe Master Feng has answers." Plagg glared at Bast. Technically he was her son, but still, it wouldn't kill the goddess to use his name!

"I'm confused. Each of my bugs are a little stronger than the last. Could Neko have gotten strong enough to use us as programs?" Tikki asked.

"I'll speak to Amun-Ra about this. Something new is happening, and it scares me. Plagg, I'll need you to pretend to be me tomorrow. All you have to do is sit on his shoulder and guide him around. Think you can do that?" Bast asked, "And make sure you answer to the name Sundae."


	3. Chapter 3

"We have to go see him." Alya said.

"I can't. I don't want what could be my last memory of Adrien laying broken in a hospital bed." Nino looked away.

"I know. I don't want that to be my last memory of him ether, but we have to go. It's the right thing to do." Alya reasoned.

They were outside in front of their school. It was lunch break, and neither of them were interested in eating. On another bench, Kaito held a sandwich with only one bite taken out of it. He reached up under his mask to scratch his eye sockets. Both of them stood and went to his side.

"I should have stayed with them." Kaito felt Alya sit on the bench and pull him into a hug. A hand rested on the shoulder not occupied by Plagg/Sundae. Nino.

"Shh." Alya soothed, "It's not your fault. It was just a freak accident."

Kaito scratched at his eye sockets, "If I had been there..."

"Will you stop scratching? I'm beginning to think you have fleas!" Nino cut in.

"I can't cry. My tear ducts were burned away. Instead, I get an itch. There's no way to fix it." Kaito sniffled. "I could have saved them. I would have heard the bus much sooner, and warned them."

"You can't blame yourself. I shudder to think of the outcome if Cyber Neko had not come."

He should feel bad! It's his fault my Adrien is hurt!" A sharp voice cut in.

"Not now, Chloe! He feels bad enough as it is!" Alya snapped.

"He's a freak that should be locked up in an institute somewhere!" Chloe screeched.

Kaito surged to his feet, forcing Plagg/Sundae to dig is claws into his shoulder to stay on. "At least I'm not some ugly barbie wanna be!"

"Why you hideous troll!" Chloe screamed.

"I'm leaving before I say something worse!" Kaito stormed off.

Chloe launched into an unintelligible screech, and suddenly stopped, "How the heck does he know what I look like?"

Alya and Nino looked at each other.

"He stood up to her."

"And broke her."

* * *

Kaito sank against the wall, shuddering. He forced himself to calm down. It would be very bad if he got akumatized, especially with both Ladybug and Chat Noir laid up.

"You okay?" Plagg asked worriedly.

"I'm okay." Kaito answered. "I'm pretty sure I calmed myself fast enough."

"You are on edge." Plagg noted, and began to purr, "Relax. I ain't purring because I want to."

"I'm fine." Kaito relaxed, "Thanks, Plagg. I was tense."

"We have got to do something about the love situation between them."

"Agreed."

Tikki poked her head up out of Kaito's coat pocket, "I can't think of anything."

"We cou-"

"NO!" both Kaito and Tikki snapped together.

"But it would work!"

"PLAGG!"

* * *

Alya tried to focus on the lesson. Her mind wandered. Chloe glared at Kaito, who sat in the row below her. Kaito had a small recorder on his side of the table. His seat mate, a girl named Milly, took notes. Again Alya tried to focus.

"Will the high school teachers begin the test?" the intercom went off.

Fear lanced through Alya, and she wasn't the only one. Everyone quickly dropped under their tables and pressed themselves against the benches. They all knew what those words met, having ran multiple drills for this scenario. Kaito listened, and realized he was the only one who could handle the Akuma, if this was an Akuma. He remembered he didn't have Bast. Dang it! Please let this be a drill! The door blew apart.

"I smell Miraculous!"

' _Adrien's so gonna kill me for this!_ ' Kaito stood. "Plagg, claws out."

Cat Noir? Kaito's Cat Noir?" Chloe squeaked, "No fair! He's blind! A blind person can't be a hero!"

"Ever hear of Daredevil?" Nino snapped.

"Can someone describe the Akuma? I'm still blind in this form. Ladybug always describes the akuma for me!" Kaito called out.

"Think Cerberus!" Nino called out, "Hades pet three headed dog, with a human body!"

"Black spines down it's back!" Alya added, "long tail!"

"Thanks!" ' _Rely on your ears._ ' Kaito listened. Yep, one of the heads was panting. He moved carefully, staff in hand. "Stay down low. I'm going to drive it outside." He visualized the classroom as Adrien had described it so long ago. 835 steps by 1020 steps. His seat was at step 600. Wall was 300 steps to the left. Counting steps, he reached the door. Now, a left after 86 steps led to the stairs, and 1500 steps leads outside. ' _Bast, I really could use you!_ '

The dog man was following. Good. He rushed outside. "Tikki, I need your help. Tell me if you can locate the cursed object. Be careful. Marinette will tan my hide if anything happens to you."

"On it!" Tikki took off, "Once the cursed object is broken, switch Plagg for me."

"Got it." Kaito listened. He leapt aside, bringing his staff down hard on one of the heads. A pained yelp told him he had hit his target. He felt the hot breath of the second head on his neck and went flat. A yelp followed the snarling. The second head had bitten the first head. Where was head three? Tikki screamed. Kaito dove toward the sound of her scream. He collided with head three. "Tikki!" he felt head two's breath on him again and somersaulted over head three.

"The collar on the middle head!" Tikki screamed painfully.

"Got it!" Kaito waited until he felt hot breath on his neck. He flipped over the head and onto Cerberus's back. Feeling around while trying to stay on, he felt the collar. "Cataclysm!" the collar broke apart. "Plagg, claws in, Tikki, spots on!" Plagg returned, but nothing happened. "Dang it! I forgot the earrings!" At that exact moment, He felt a familiar weight on his shoulder. "Bast! Suit up!" a moment later he stood as Cyber Neko. Now that he could see, he pulled out a disk. Tikki program! Run!" Tikki spiraled into the disk and he plugged it into his disk player. The white of his uniform turned red and gained black spots. His ears and tail vanished as a pair of antennae appeared on his head. He gripped the yo-yo. "You are done!" he swung the yo-yo around and at the dark butterfly. It was collected and Neko released it as a white butterfly. "No more evil for you" Cerberus shrank in size to reveal itself to be a well dressed man. Neko waited. The man stirred and sat up.

"What happened? Was I akumatized?" the man looked around, "Are you Ladybug?"

"Cyber Neko, actually. I can borrow her power, Cat Noirs too." Neko explained, "You're safe now."

"It's strange though. I thought you had to be angry to get akumatized. I wasn't angry. I was a bit nervous, which is normal before I give a presentation." the man stood, "Thank you, Cyber Neko. "I definitely wasn't angry. How was I akumatized?"

"This worries me. Hawkmoth must be getting stronger. I intend to look into this." Neko said, "Where do you need to go? I can get you there pretty quick."

"Hmm, I have an hour before my presentation at Paris University. I have plenty of time to walk. It's not far." the man smiled.

"I'll leave you to it." Neko watched him leave. He reverted to his normal colors. "Tikki, you okay?"

"I'm fine. I took a tail to the face, and crashed into a tree." Tikki grinned.

"I'm fine, thanks for asking!" Plagg muttered.

"We need- I mean, I need to get back to class." Kaito waited for Plagg and Tikki to hide in his pockets. "Bast, suit down." he returned to his normal form. Bast shifted into Sundae.

"We need to speak to Master Fu after school. It's urgent!" Bast whispered as she guided him back to class.

Kaito braced himself as he entered.

"Dude! I can't believe you are Cat Noir! I never suspected a thing!" Nino said as they left the school for the day.

"Ladybug is so gonna murder me for this later! I broke her biggest rule!" Kaito moaned, "I'm so dead!"

"I'm sure she'll understand." Alya grinned, "I can put this on the Ladyblog, right?"

"I rather you didn't. The less people that know, the better."

"You do know it'll be in the school paper, right?"

"Already dealt with that. It will not be mentioned."

"Are you going with us to the hospital?" Nino asked.

"Yes. I get to go get a tooth pulled."

"Ouch."

They entered the hospital.

"He's in room 5A in the ICU." Kaito turned left, "See you in about an hour."

Alya and Nino continued on. Before long, they reached the ICU. A nurse stopped them.

"Who are we here to see?" she asked kindly.

"Adrien Agreste." Alya replied, "We're friends of his."

"Names?"

"I'm Nino and she's Alya." Nino said.

"Lets see. Yes. You two are on the list. Follow me." the nurse led them toward Adrien's room, "I want to prepare you. He will have a tube coming out of his mouth, and you will see a lot of wires and tubes connected to his body. Don't be alarmed. We are doing everything we can." She opened the door, "His father is a mess right now."

Together they entered the room. Nino gasped, and went to Adrien's side. "Dude..."

Alya joined him. She had expected him to look bad, but definitely not this bad. He was swollen, casts encasing both of his legs and right arm. Bandages embraced his chest and head. Wires were everywhere. A breathing tube jutted out of his mouth. His face looked to be covered by one giant bruise.

"He looks far worse than I thought." Alya whispered, "I can't begin to imagine the pain Mr. Agreste must be feeling."

"And I pray you never have to feel this pain."

Both Alya and Nino turned. Gabriel looked like he'd been through the wringer. Gone was his usual crisp suit, replaced by a pair of old jeans and a green sweater. He looked exhausted and gaunt. He had aged.

"He actually cares!" Nino said.

"Nino!" Alya gasped.

"I'm sorry about that." Nino looked down.

"I deserved that." Gabriel looked away, "No need to apologize. I wish it didn't take this to open my eyes."

"Be careful. You are a prime target for an Akuma." Alya was concerned.

' _You know that won't happen to you._ ' "I understand."

* * *

"Ready to get out of here?" Sakine asked.

"More than ready!" Marinette said, "Can we stop to see Adrien? Please?"

"Lets get you home and settled in, first." Sakine smiled, "I'll take you to see him tomorrow. I promise."

"But I want to see him today!"

"Tomorrow. You have an appointment there for your knee." Sakine said, "I've prepared the guest room for you."

"What about my room?"

"There's no way you can get yourself up those stairs."

"...Fine." An orderly wheeled Marinette to the waiting car. She was helped in, and saw her dad folding up the chair. He put it in the trunk. "Why are we taking the wheelchair?"

"You'll be using it." Tom said.

"Why?"

"You are not to walk on that knee."

"I can't use crunches? I've got two working arms."

"Your shoulder was dislocated."

"Oh yeah." Marinette sulked, "When do I go back to school?"

"Four weeks. By then you'll be able to use crunches."

"I'm going to be so far behind..."

"That's why I've hired a tutor. She'll get you caught up."

"Who?"

"Her name is Deka."

"That's Kaito's governess!"

* * *

A few days passed. Adrien remained in his coma. He wasn't getting better, but he wasn't getting worse. Marinette's parents took her to see Adrien. Sitting in her wheelchair before his hospital room doors, she was hit with nerves. Alya and Nino both looked at her.

"Calm down, Marinette." Alya said. "You need to do this."

Marinette had chickened out when her mother offered to take her the day after she was brought home.

"I know. I didn't think it would be this hard!" Marinette replied, "I can't do this!"

"Alya and I have been by everyday to see him. You can do this, and you are doing this whether you want to or not." He moved behind her chair, "Alya, get the door. We're doing this the hard way!"

"Wait!" Marinette protested, "Do I look alright?"

"You do know he is in a coma, right?" Alya face palmed.

"I know! What if he wakes up while I'm in there?" Marinette gasped. "What will I do? What will I say?"

"Seriously?" Nino groaned. "Alya, open the door."

"Wait!" Marinette protested again as she felt herself being pushed into the room. She didn't dare look at the bed. Instead, she looked at Mr. Agreste. Was that a five o'clock shadow? Was he really that old? He looked terrible. In fact, he looked thin, his face gaunt, eyes hollow. He looked more dead than alive. She felt her chair being moved, and gulped, shutting her eyes. No. not like this.

"I don't want to see him like this." She whispered.

"Oh no. You are not getting out of this so easily!" Alya snapped, "He really doesn't look that bad!"

"I'm scared."

"Just look." Nino urged, "And remember, Alya and I have seen him looking far worse than this."

Marinette wished she could run out of the room. She took a deep breath. Just do it, get it over with. Another deep breath. It's now or never. She finally opened her eyes.

"Oh Adrien!" Nino pushed her up to the bed. "He looks so bad!"

"He hasn't gotten better, but he hasn't gotten worse." Mr. Agreste replied.

Marinette ignored her tears. Her mind went back to the accident. She knew about the bus and the car, but how had she been less injured? Wasn't she hit by that car? Something happened, but what? Why couldn't she remember?

"Um..." Great time to be at loss for words. "Uh..." Marinette took a deep breath, "Adrien, I'm here. I'm okay." Great, that sounded so lame. "Uh, get better soon?" Stop it! "I've been worrying about you." Argh! Why couldn't she express herself around him?

"He is in a coma, and you still have problems?" Alya face palmed, "Girl, pull yourself together!"

"Sorry." Marinette blushed. Okay. Let's try this again. "Adrien, I'm here." She reached out and took his hand into her own, "I'm fine. I need you to be fine too. Please? You probably don't even hear me. Get better, okay?" That's how she wished her words came out. Instead, she babbled strings of words that didn't make sense, her cheeks burning with embarrassment. She lowered her head in shame. Would she ever be able to talk normally around Adrien? A soft chuckle cut through her thoughts.

"You sound just like Emilie did back when we were in school." Mr. Agreste couldn't stop the small smile, "I found it very cute. Emilie was Adrien's mother. She and Tom were the only ones who stayed when I was diagnosed with Leukemia."

"Did she stop at all?" Marinette asked.

"Yes, she did. She just didn't realize it until I pointed it out." Mr. Agreste explained.

Suddenly several machines began trilling warnings.

* * *

Master Fu looked up as the bell rang, signaling someone entering his shop. He rushed to the front counter. He stopped. The shop was empty. He had heard the bell, right? Something on the counter caught his attention. He looked, and picked up it up. It was a book, and an ancient one at that. On it's cover was an image done in the style of Egyptian hieroglyphs. The image showed a figure in white with three pairs of wings carrying a scythe. It had a white mask. In fact, the figure kind of reminded him of Cat Noir. He knew who that figure was.

"Amun-Ra. Oh no, no! They aren't ready!" he gasped. Shakily, he opened the book and began to read.


	4. Chapter 4

"He's in respiratory failure." the doctor explained, "he needs to be placed on ECMO. There's a problem. Both of ours are in use."

"Can you get one here?" Gabriel asked.

"We're working on it. I've got people calling around. We'll find one." the doctor promised, "Right now, we have him on 100% oxygen, line wide open."

"He'll be okay, right?" Alya asked, her voice small.

The doctor turned, "I honestly don't know. Adrien has already proved to me that he's a fighter. Right now, it's a toss up."

"I'm not giving up on my dude, no sirree!" Nino responded, "I know Adrien will not let this setback stop him!"

"It is good that you believe in him." The doctor said kindly, "Right now, family only."

"Them too. They are his family too." Gabriel responded.

"Thanks, Mr. Agreste." Alya said as Nino nodded. They both looked over at Marinette.

"Thank you." She whispered softly, looking up. "It should be me in there! Why is it not me? I was in the same accident! How did I walk away mostly unhurt? Huh? I was hit by the same car, right?" She was now breathing hard, "Why was he hurt worse than me?"

Nino looked at Alya. "She hasn't seen the footage."

"What footage?" Marinette screamed.

"Um... Marinette, Adrien saved you." Alya broke the silence. "He shoved you out of the way, taking the full brunt of the impact."

"What?" Marinette gasped, trying to think back. "Why can't I remember?"

"You did have a concussion and suffered a brain bleed. Doctors told us to be prepared for this." Alya moved to her friends side.

"I want to see the footage." Marinette demanded.

"I'll arrange it." Gabriel said.

——————————————————

Kaito stepped into Master Fu's shop. He felt Sundae leave his shoulder and shift into her Kwami form. Master Fu moved toward them. Both Tikki and Plagg appeared from under Kaito's collar.

"Master." Bast spoke. "You've received the codex, correct?"

"Yes, I have." Fu responded.

"What codex?" Kaito asked.

"There's several codices, three in fact. One is Creation, one is Destruction, and the most powerful one is the one of Amun-Ra." Plagg explained, "Creation is here in Master's care. Destruction is in the royal library behind three planes of bullet proof glass and has two guards watching over it, not that it will stop me, of course." the black cat Kwami grinned. "Amun-Ra's Codex is missing. It will only appear when the Dark rises again."

"It's right here." Master Fu held the book.

"No, Ladybug is not ready! She's not strong enough!" Tikki cried out.

"I knew it would come back! This time, I intend to destroy it entirely!" Plagg roared.

"She's injured too." Kaito added, "Before you ask, I figured their identities out on my own. They both confirmed it. Bast, you said you went to speak to Amun-Ra?"

"I did. It's really bad. The Dark is stirring. It looks like it will wake up soon. When it does..." Bast couldn't finish.

"It will akumatize everyone." Master Fu finished, "And blanket our world in darkness, forever."

"How do I stop it?" Kaito asked.

"You can't." Tikki said.

"It is not us who will defeat it." Bast spoke.

"It's me." Plagg replied.

"Okay, than I'll become Cat Noir and-"

"No, Kaito. Adrien and I must do this together."

"Why?"

"Well," Plagg looked over at Fu, who nodded. "Adrien and I must unite our spirits and become one."

"The Dark?"

"Umm..." Tikki looked around. "I'm not sure how to describe it."

"It's very difficult to describe." Fu said, "All records of it were ordered destroyed during the middle ages by King Rudolph, whom was partnered with the Kwami Lupine."

"I wish we knew what happened to them. They went into what is now called the Black Forest and never returned. Lupine was like me and Plagg, a representative of a powerful ability. She was the Kwami of light." Tikki replied, "She was a lot like Bast."

"Isn't Bast a representative too?" Kaito felt for a chair. Fu helped him sit.

"Yes, I am a Kwami." Bast explained, "In fact, I am the oldest Kwami, older than even Tikki, who was born along with the current universe."

"And technically my mother." Plagg responded.

"Plagg was born of me." Bast continued, "He is the youngest Kwami. He was born to face the Dark, and destroy it. As you can see, he has yet to succeed."

"I came close once!" Plagg snapped.

"And wiped out 98% of all life in the process." Tikki said.

"That wasn't me! That was the Dark!" Plagg glared at Tikki.

"I know Tikki and Plagg represent creation and destruction, but Bast, you never told me what you represent."

"I represent knowledge." Bast smiled, "I thought I told you, but I must have forgotten."

——————————————-

 _"You can run, but you can't hide!"_

 _Adrien laid low, listening to Cat Blanc's footsteps. He kept his breathing quiet. This had been the last thing he'd expected upon waking up in that room. So far, Ladybug hated him, Queen Bee and Rena Rouge had befriended him quickly, and the group leader, Mothra, had welcomed him. This was a very different Paris than what he was used to. For one thing, humans, upon their 13_ _th_ _birthdays, were brought to the citadel where they would receive their Kwami, and take on their new form. Mothra planned to sneak Adrien there, hoping he would get a Kwami. A hand came down on his back and shoved him into the ground with a growl. Ladybug. Of all people, he just had to get stuck with miss stick up her butt herself. He sighed, and got his mouth covered quickly by Rena._

 _"Shh!" Rena hissed softly._

 _Chat Blanc moved away. They waited. His steps faded away. Very carefully, Ladybug rose. She looked left and right. "He's gone. Move!" crouching low, they ran._

 _In the center of Paris rose the citadel. A large u shaped building made of white, rose, and gold marble, it was very beautiful. It reminded Adrien of a futuristic castle. Graceful arches brushed the sky while waterfalls cascaded down both of its sides. They entered what Adrien assumed was a courtyard. This courtyard resembled a garden. Laughter rang out as tiny creatures darted about._

 _"This is the Garden." Rena said._

 _"Are they Kwamis?" Adrien asked._

 _"Yes. Children, babies, really. They may die before getting the chance to bond." Ladybug looked sad._

 _"They all will bond someday. We just have to defeat Cat Blanc first." Rena smiled, "Come on, lets get this boy bonded already!"_

 _Ladybug led them into the citadel, and turned. "Welcome to the Grand Citadel. This way." She led them into a large room with a pool filled with clear liquid in the center. Four pillars rose around the pool. The room was done in red carpet with rose marble walls, and gold molding. Adrian looked around. Portraits lined the walls, each one showing a child with their Kwami. He gasped suddenly and rushed up to a portrait. It was of a blond boy with green eyes with a black cat Kwami on his shoulder. Rena joined him._

 _"That's Adrien, our Adrien that is. He bonded with Plagg, and became Cat Noir. He was Blanc's first victim." Rena said._

 _"No. He is Cat Blanc!" Ladybug spat._

 _"No. I refuse to believe that. Cat would never let himself become that thing!" Rena snapped back._

 _"Good. You brought Adrien to me." a gentle male voice said, "Ladybug, Rena, set your argument aside." Adrien turned. A man wearing a uniform resembling a dragon walked toward them._

 _"Master Longg." both girls bowed, if it could be called that. They stood with their arms spread, head bowed and upper bodies bent at an angle. One leg was bent forward with their other leg extended behind them. Adrien decided it would be best to not try to copy them._

 _"Rise." Longg commanded. Both girls stood before him, heads still bowed, hands folded upon their waists, chest thrust out. Again, Adrien didn't copy them. "Stand equal." Ladybug squeaked, clearly in surprise. Rena face palmed, and elbowed Ladybug, who broke out of her pose. Longg turned to face Adrien. "You mustn't mind Ladybug. She is very strict when it comes to following rules. I am Master Longg, Guardian of the Kwamis. You saw the Garden, correct?" Adrien nodded. "They used to have homes all over Paris. One could find them everywhere. Now, those you saw in the Garden are all that's left. My power protects them. Come. You will not be chosen by a Kwami today."_

 _"What?" Ladybug gasped, "Master! He has to bond!"_

 _"And he will bond. I have already chosen the Kwami."_

 _"But that's against the rules! It's the Kwami's choice, not yours!"_

 _"At ease, daughter of Tikki. The Kwami has already agreed. Adrien, step into the pool and be cleansed."_

 _"But this is not how it works!"_

 _"These are trying times, my dear. This is a very special Kwami. Adrien, fully submerge yourself, and empty your mind. Relax."_

 _Adrien did as told, and was shocked to find he could still breathe even though his head was under the liquid. He did as he was told. The... liquid was comfortably warm. It was not water. He waited._

 _"About time!" A very familiar voice snapped._

 _Adrien tore open his eyes. "Plagg!"_

 _"Yep! Got any Camembert on you? I'm starving!"_

 _"Um, no?"_

 _"Aw. Let's get this thing started already." Plagg began to glow with dark light. "Take me and push me into your chest!" Adrien did. He closed his eyes, wincing. The transformation was different. Why did it hurt? He let out a pained gasp. "Almost done." He took deep breaths. Suddenly, the pain stopped. "You may open your eyes and get out of the pool now." Adrien did._

 _"Cat Noir?" Ladybug gasped, "Master, how?"_

 _"Wasn't Plagg Cat Blanc's Kwami?" Rena asked._

 _"Cat Blanc rejected Plagg once he had his power. Plagg has waited here for Adrien's arrival. Cat Noir alone has the power to counter Cat Blanc." Longg explained._

 _"That means with Cat Noir's help, we'll finally defeat Blanc! Everything will go back to normal!" Rena was excited._

 _"But not for those Blanc has killed." Ladybug looked away._

 _"We don't know that!" Rena snapped, "You need to get over it! I lost my parents in the attack too, but you don't see me wallowing in pity! Everybody lost somebody! I need the Ladybug I once knew back, and I want her back right now! This has got to stop! This isn't you!" She was crying now, "I need you, Ladybug!"_

 _"That Ladybug died that day!"_

 _"Can someone fill me in?" Adrien asked._

 _"Here's the short version. A boy named Adrien bonded with Plagg, became Cat Noir, went insane with power, rejected Plagg when he tried to halt him, went even more insane without Plagg checking his power, transformed into Blanc, went on a destructive rampage, killed 3 quarters of our civilization, and intends to stomp out us because we dared to fight him." Rena explained, "Ladybug came the closest to defeating him."_

 _"I see. You need me to stop him, got it." Adrien said, "I know, it won't be easy."_

 _—————————————_

Marinette sat before a computer inside the Agreste mansion, Mr. Agreste next to her. With them was Officer Roger. Without a word, Roger leaned forward and tapped play. Marinette watched. On screen, she saw herself and Adrien walking and talking. Adrien froze. Next came the bus. It plowed into a car, sending it flying. She saw Adrien turning, and herself turning seconds later. Adrien acted, pulling her in, and shoving her hard, sending her stumbling to fall onto the ground. The car kept coming. Adrien raised his hands, his face resigned as if he had already accepted his fate. The car came down, Adrien folding under it. A hand appeared on her shoulder, giving a comforting squeeze. A glance told her it was Roger. He looked sad. On screen, Marinette saw herself getting up. She was immediately thankful Kwamis couldn't be seen in photos or on camera. She watched her pathetic attempts to save Adrien. Cyber Neko appeared. He strained, managing to lift the car a little as she pulled Adrien out. He shifted to his beast form, and she saw herself pull Adrien and herself onto his back, and he shot off screen. About five minutes passed. Roger, sirens screaming, pulled up.

"If you had waited for me, I don't think Adrien would have made it." Roger said. "That bus was empty along with the car. The driver turned himself in to me. I had the bus examined by a mechanic, and what happened was it's brakes failed. It was mechanical failure, and no fault of the driver. He feels terrible about this."

"I have decided not to press charges. It's not his fault. It's just a terrible freak accident." Mr. Agreste said.

"Nether will I." Marinette's voice was flat, her face devoid of emotion. Even her eyes were empty. She wheeled herself away from the computer screen. Mr. Agreste followed her. "It's my fault."

"No." Mr. Agreste knelt, "It's no ones fault. I don't blame you. Adrien will not blame you."

"He should." Her tone remained flat. "I should have gotten out of the way on my own. He wouldn't be hurt."

"Marinette, I know where you are coming from. I understand."

"Losing your wife is different."

"Is it really?"

Marinette stayed silent.

Mr. Agreste's phone rang. He stood, and answered it, a smile appearing on his face.

"They found an ECMO. It's been flown in." He looked at Marinette. "Be careful. Right now you are a prime target for Hawkmoth." ' _You will not akumatize her. But then again, you don't exactly choose your victims._ '

"I don't care." Marinette replied.

———————————————

A week went by. Marinette returned to school. She was using crunches now. Alya glanced at her. Marinette had barely said two words to her. She'd ignored everyone when they went up to her, pushing her way to her seat. Alya felt a tap on her shoulder and turned. The student sitting behind her, Milly, handed her a note. It read, meet me in the park during lunch. Alya gave a quick nod. Milly returned the nod. Alya again glanced at Marinette. Lunch couldn't come soon enough.

"That's so not Marinette!" Chloe exploded as soon as everyone gathered at the park, "She's like a robot! She's a prime target for Akumatization!"

"For once, I agree with Chloe." Nino nodded.

"Same here." Kaito agreed.

"We have got to snap her out of this!" Chloe continued, "Any ideas?"

"We can try, but survivor's guilt is a nasty thing." Milly said.

"What's that?" Nino asked.

"It's guilt, but it's not your average guilt, like the kind you get when you accidentally hurt someone. It's more extreme. Marinette feels like she should not have survived." Milly explained.

"But Adrien isn't... gone... yet!" Chloe stumbled over the word gone.

"Have you been to see him?" Alya asked.

"No. I'm on week two of a four week grounding." Chloe groaned.

"What did you do this time?" Nino grinned.

"You know Miss Fatsi- I mean Miss Farsi? Well, she's spending the month at the hotel while her house is remodeled."

"Lady's so huge that if she were in America, she'd have her own zip code."

"Nino!"

"Sorry."

"I was assigned to be her gofer. I was bringing her tea, and apparently she found a rat under the cup. I had nothing to do with it. We are having a slight rodent problem, but it's under control. Daddy didn't want to lose Miss Fat-Farsi's money, so he punished me." Chloe explained.

"When you say slight, how bad?" Alya asked.

Chloe sighed, "Fine, it's a little worse than slight. Daddy hired a couple more feline pest control officers. The situation is getting under control."

"Maybe Cat Noir can help you out." Nino looked at Kaito.

"I would, but using my power like that is forbidden." Kaito replied, "It would be fun though!"

An explosion rocked the area. Kaito snapped around to the direction it came from. He focused on his ears, listening. His eyes would be narrowed if he could control them. He reached into his pocket and slipped the ring on. This time he also had the earrings. There was no way he would let Marinette transform.

"Akuma!" Nino called out, "Girl doll riding a cloud!"

"Plagg, claws out." Kaito sighed. He had hoped he wouldn't have to do this again, but he didn't have a choice. Once he was transformed, he pulled out his silver bo staff. "I can't hear her."

"She's not making noise." Alya said, "Do you know the clock style?"

"I do. I am going to need your help for this. Direction?"

"4 o'clock!" Chloe called out.

Kaito spun and swung his staff. There was a solid thunk. He'd made contact. Leaping, he tackled the doll. It spun, sending him flying to crash into the side of the school. He laid there for a few minutes, dazed. Alya ran to his side. He was likely seeing stars, and maybe a couple galaxies. Slowly, he stood.

I could really use Ladybug!" he waited.

"She's right in fro- Ahhh!" Alya screamed.

Again Kaito lunged, grabbing the doll. There was no way he'd use the staff. He didn't want to hurt Alya by accident. The doll spun again. He clung to it tightly. It toppled backwards, and Kaito leapt away. It crashed onto the ground and he dove toward the sound. Now, where was the Akuma? Again he was shaken off.

"I am China doll! Give me your miraculous!" The doll rolled so it was on top of him. Her voice had a strange echo to it.

"Sorry, but no!" he grunted, trying to shove the doll aside, "I promised a close friend I would keep them safe!"

"I will crush them out of you!" The doll seemed to be getting heavier.

"He's stuck! We need to help him! Where is Ladybug?" Chloe cried out.

Kaito was struggling to breathe. If he could just get his staff positioned... There! He extended it, sending the doll flying. He gasped for a few moments. Yep, ribs are definitely cracked. Groaning, he rose.

"Ladybug's... not... coming!" he wheezed, "It's... okay! I'm... calling... Cyber Neko! I'm... too... injured... to... fight!" with that, he leapt away. Once out of sight, he detransformed and dropped to the ground. "Plagg, you... okay?"

"I'm not okay. I need Camembert." Plagg replied. "You are definitely not okay."

"Bast, suit up." Kaito ignored him. He soon stood as Cyber Neko. "Much better." He turned and left. Quickly he returned to the park. "Where are you?" Looking about, he saw the injured and bloodied form of Alya in Nino's arms. She looked broken, her right arm bent unnaturally, her left leg crushed. "Dang it!" Chloe lay nearby, her face badly bruised, blood leaking from her nose, eyes, ears, and mouth. A tree branch jutted out of her forehead like some kind of Unicorn horn. Milly was by her, her lib swollen and her right eye swollen shut. Blood poured from the back of her head. Nino looked to be the only one not hurt. Neko growled.

"Give me the miraculous and I will heal them!" The doll appeared in front of him.

"Heal them, first." he snapped.

"Miraculous first!" The doll demanded.

"Don't do it, Neko!" Nino cried out.

"Don't be a coward!" Milly coughed.

Neko grinned, and pulled out a disk. "Claw program! Run!" Claws grew from his fingers. "You are not getting the Miraculous!" He lunged, and sank his claws into the doll. The Akuma glowed deep within the doll, fully crystallized. "Just as I thought! Tikki program, run!" He glowed, gaining Ladybug's colors and yo-yo. "Please, something I can use! Lucky Charm!" A small handheld vacuum fell into his hands. "A vacuum? Hmm." He looked around. "How the heck am I supposed to use it?"

"The cloud!" Plagg pointed out.

"Got it." Neko searched for the cloud.

"I know your plan! You won't succeed!" China Doll leapt onto her cloud, "You can't hear me!"

"I can see in this form!" Neko lunged toward the cloud, vacuum running. Just as he expected, the cloud was sucked up. The doll crashed to the ground. "Now lets heal you." He opened the yo-yo. Again, he went through the same motions as before. The same warm light from before spilled forth. The doll glowed as the Akuma crumbled to dust, a white butterfly flying away. He turned. Alya, Milly, and Chloe glowed. Their injuries faded away. Now they looked like they were sleeping. He turned back to the doll, who reverted to a woman wearing a doctors outfit. He waited. The woman stirred and woke up. She stood.

"How the heck was I Akumatized? I wasn't angry, sad, or hurt!" the woman looked at Neko. "Ladybug?"

"It's Cyber Neko, actually. Ladybug is laid up with a knee injury. I have a copy of her power. This has been happening a lot. I fear that Hawkmoth has gotten stronger. Do you need me to rush you anywhere?"Neko asked.

"Actually, yes. Paris Children's Hospital. I'm Dr. She by the way, and I have a patient to get to, quickly." Dr. She requested.

Neko glanced at the park. The girls were already sitting up. Neko nodded, and gave a thumbs up. He had it covered. "Let's go. Beast program, run." He shifted to his tiger form. "Hold on tight!" Dr. She climbed onto his back. He shot off.

"What happened? It got windy! Was I hit?" Chloe looked around.

"You got impaled through the head." Milly shuddered, "And Alya got her arm and leg broken. It's okay now. Neko healed you using Ladybug's yo-yo."

"Where is Kaito?" Neko asked, "I was scared for a bit there."

"I'm right here." Kaito walked up to them, wincing a bit, "My aching ribs..."

"You sure you're okay? We need to get back to class." Nino asked.

"I'm okay. I've been hurt worse than this before." Everyone went back to class.

————————————

Marinette stared ahead, watching their teacher, her face blank. She felt dead inside, and didn't care. There was nothing to feel. The teacher was giving a lecture. Marinette took notes, her movements wooden. Alya looked at her. This was like sitting next to a robot. She looked down at the seat next to Nino, which was empty. A pang of grief struck her. Would Adrien ever sit in his seat ever again?

Nino glanced to his right, and closed his eyes. He felt so lonely. Grief filled him. It hurt, sitting at this table, alone. He sighed, willing himself to not break down. His throat went tight. There was a lump in his stomach. It felt hard to breathe. He raised his hand.

"Yes?" Their teacher asked.

"May I go to the bathroom?" Nino felt his voice crack.

"You may." Nino ran from the room, doing his best to not break down in front of the class.

Chloe kept her eyes on her tablet. Her father had forbade her to visit Adrien until her punishment was over. It was killing her inside. Thanks to Miss Fat-Farsi, she was stuck inside the hotel. No friends, no electronics save for her school tablet, helping housekeeping with cleaning rooms, and having to be a waitress during the dinner rush in the restaurant. This was the worst punishment ever. Three more weeks to go. At least it all was tiring her out and she was sleeping better. She was seriously considering being a waitress during the dinner rush.

"Chloe!" Chloe jumped.

"Yes?" She asked.

"Without using the calculator app on your tablet, tell me the answer to 82(6x5)."

"Um, 68?"

"Very good."

Chloe glanced up at Marinette. Even though they were enemies, she still worried about the girl. She looked and acted like a robot. This was not Marinette at all. Chloe sighed. She had to get her Marinette back, no matter what, but how? How could she reach her? Wait. Why did she even care? Another sigh. As much as she hated to admit it, they were kind of friends.

"The answer is 45." Marinette replied, her voice flat.

Nino returned, and stared at his spot. "May I sit somewhere else? It hurts to be next to Adrien's spot."

"You can go sit with Milly." their teacher nodded. "You guys all look so sad. Let's end the lesson. No homework tonight. You may spend the rest of today on your own. The gym is free. You may go there too. Library too. If you need to talk, I'm here. No leaving school grounds."

Everyone put their tablets away. Several students booked it for the library while others made use of the gym. Milly went to Marinette. Gently, she put her hand on her shoulder. "Marinette?"

"Go away." came the flat voice.

"I want to talk, okay?"

"Go away."

"Please? I promise I will leave you alone afterward."

"Go ahead."

"You're hurting. I get that. I want you to know that if you want to talk, I'm here."

"Why?"

"Because I care."

You shouldn't care. You should hate me. I'm the reason why Adrien is badly injured, dying, even."

"Do you know what survivor's guilt is?"

"No, don't care."

"It's what you are going through now."

"I feel nothing."

"We're worried about you."

"Don't need your worry."

"You're not okay."

"Stop talking to me."

"Fine."

Milly went down to the gym. She decided to run laps. Running helped her think. There had to be some way to reach Marinette, but how? What could she do? How could she help? Maybe the library had a book that would help? Milly finished her lap and headed to the library.

The teacher sat beside Marinette, studying her. "It's okay to talk about it. What you are feeling is normal after an event like this."

"What feeling? I feel nothing inside." Marinette stared straight ahead.

"That's okay."

"I want to die. I don't deserve to live. I ruined him."

"Marinette, everything will be okay. Please, don't do anything to hurt yourself, okay?" Alya begged.

"Why do you even care?" Marinette stood. Alya followed her.

"I care because you are my best friend!" Alya chased her.

Everyone stopped what they were doing and watched. Marinette stepped outside.

"Marinette!" Chloe raced after her, "Please! Stop! Don't do this! Someone call 911! Now!"

Marinette kept walking. She didn't deserve to live, not after what she did. Everyone would be better off without her. They'd get over it once they'd realize they were safer without her. She reached the road. Tikki could easily find a new Ladybug. She'd done it before. This time it wouldn't be any different. She was done with life.

A truck came up the road. Marinette stepped into it's path. Everything would end soon. She turned and stared at the truck, it's driver frantically trying to stop in time. She didn't care. No one deserved her.

"MARINETTE" Alya screamed in horror, trying to run faster. "PLEASE, STOP THIS! I BEG YOU!" There was no way she was going to reach her in time. Tears blurred her vision. "Marinette!"

"No! No no no no no!" Chloe wailed, trying desperately to get to Marinette. Like Alya, she was simply too far away.


End file.
